Sandeep Krishnamurthy will serve as the inaugural Singelyn Family Dean of the College of Business Administration and Singelyn Graduate School of Business.
This position marks Cal Poly Pomona's first endowed deanship and is part of a recent $12.5 million transformative gift from alumni couple David and Ruth Singelyn that, among other notable investments, established the new Singelyn Graduate School of Business.
"Dr. Krishnamurthy is an experienced leader that brings a passion for shared governance, collaboration with campus stakeholders and industry partners and is passionate about innovation. I strongly believe that the College of Business Administration will continue to thrive and grow under his leadership," said Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Jennifer Brown.
Krishnamurthy joins Cal Poly Pomona after more than two decades at the University of Washington (UW) where he served as the founding dean of UW Bothell School of Business. He joined the relatively new UW Bothell campus as an assistant professor in 1996, and when he was named the director of business programs in 2009, he set out to elevate the program to its own school. The UW Bothell School of Business was launched in 2012 with Krishnamurthy at its helm and is now a nationally renowned business school accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB).
As the Singelyn Family Dean, Krishnamurthy hopes to work with campus and business leaders, faculty, and staff to reimagine business education with the goal of future-proofing our students.
"Technology now fundamentally informs our future at all levels. The ongoing and upcoming digital transformation of all industries creates a crying need for a reimagination of business education," said Krishnamurthy. "As higher educators, we must recognize that future-proofing our diverse students will require a change in our own mindsets, and we must be willing to build flexible and adaptable structures to serve our students."
Krishnamurthy identifies growth mindset, innovation as a way of life, data analytics, digital competencies and skills, and connection to a larger purpose as five burgeoning qualities that the industry is seeking in business students, and he is eager to build upon the existing strengths of the College of Business Administration to continue to expand the college's impact and produce future-ready business leaders.
"I am incredibly enthusiastic to join Cal Poly Pomona as the Singelyn Family Dean," he said. "There is no other business school better prepared for these transitions than the College of Business Administration: the profound commitment to students, the culture of experiential learning, discovery, and innovation, and the unshakeable support for diversity, inclusion and equity are just the ingredients needed for a forward-looking program."
Cal Poly Pomona's College of Business Administration and Singelyn Graduate School of Business is one of the largest AACSB-accredited business schools in the nation, serving more than 5,000 undergraduate and graduate students. The college is comprised of six departments offering eight undergraduate options under the degree Bachelor of Science in business administration. The Singelyn Graduate School of Business offers six graduate degrees. The college also is home to various labs and centers that provide research opportunities, industry collaboration, and polytechnic student experiences, with the newest being the Center of Excellence in Customer Insights and Digital Marketing.
David and Ruth Singelyn expressed their excitement welcoming Krishnamurthy to their alma mater: "Dr. Krishnamurthy has the experience, vision, and global perspective to lead the college and Singelyn Graduate School of Business into a new era of distinction. Importantly, he recognizes technology's vital role in preparing our future leaders for a digital world. Dr. Krishnamurthy embodies the innovation and forward thinking that are hallmarks of a quality business education, and we look forward to working with him as the inaugural Singelyn Family Dean."
During his time at UW Bothell, Krishnamurthy led the business school through a series of successful endeavors. He helped develop several interdisciplinary and executive degree programs, including a PharmD-MBA program with the UW School of Pharmacy, and the Eastside Mini-MBA, a pioneering online executive certificate program developed in partnership with the largest chamber of commerce in the region. Krishnamurthy established connections with major regional corporations like Microsoft, T-Mobile, and Avanade, and created internship and mentorship programs for business students. He led a dynamic advisory board that conducted an annual gala that brought over 200 business leaders together to support student scholarships and key programs within the School of Business.
Krishnamurthy is a sought-after published author, speaker, expert witness, and media commentator. He has edited and contributed chapters to numerous books on e-commerce, open-source software development, and research ethics, and his work has appeared in Harvard Business Review (HBR.org), Journal of Business Research, Research Policy, Journal of Consumer Affairs, Journal of Interactive Marketing, Journal of Advertising Research, and International Journal of Non-Profit and Voluntary Sector Marketing, to name a few.
Krishnamurthy completed his undergraduate and graduate work in India at the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) and XLRI, before earning a Ph.D. in marketing from the University of Arizona with a minor in economics.
